Man critically injured, driver charged with DWI after truck hits tree

LOCKPORT – A passenger in a pickup truck was critically injured and the driver was charged with drunk driving early Thursday.

The truck was eastbound on Lincoln Avenue about 1 a.m. when it struck a snowbank and a mailbox on the south side of the road, Niagara County Sheriff’s deputies said. The driver then lost control and the truck crossed over and struck a tree in a yard on the north side of the road, the investigation showed.

The passenger had to be extricated from the truck by emergency crews from Terry’s Corner’s Fire Company, deputies said. He was taken by Mercy Flight to Erie County Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition.

The driver, Levi K. Dieterle, 21, of Medina, was taken to Eastern Niagara Hospital with minor injuries. He was charged with driving while intoxicated and several violations of the vehicle and traffic law.